46 FEATHERED GAME 



play in the day's sport; who only wants a low 

 whistle or a wave of the hand for guidance, 

 needing no spoken command. I lay great stress 

 upon silence, believing that most wild creatures 

 are less afraid of the report of a gun than of the 

 human voice. The successful grouse dog is the 

 most finished product of the dog trainer's art, 

 making glad the heart of his master. If your 

 four-footed friend excels in his work on ruffed 

 grouse be satisfied that he is a good performer 

 on any game bird, and will never cause his mas- 

 ter to blush for him in any company. "A mar- 

 vel," you say! My dear sir, the only marvel 

 is that we will not take the pains to bring our 

 dogs to this pitch of perfection. 



The good grouse dog is rare. Not every 

 puppy can be trained to the requirements. It 

 almost seems that the good one on ruffed 

 grouse, like a poet, "is born, not made." Cer- 

 tainly poets are the heavier and less valuable 

 crop. Training will do much for the dog, but 

 all too often this branch of his education is con- 

 fined to his first experience, when with all a 

 puppy's life pulsing through his veins, his cup 

 of joy bubbling over, he comes suddenly upon a 

 covey of ruffed grouse. That divine scent 



